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This week, we take a look at running form: what it tells us and what we can do about it.
INTRO
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- FOLLOW and SUBSCRIBE
- Thanks for joining in on the conversation on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
- Message us with your running questions (with context) for our Q&A episode.
- atozrunning.com/free for our pre-run routine.
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MAIN TOPIC: Social Running, Marathon Bottles, & Fixing Form
Main Topic: Running Form
Idea: running form indicates things like strengths/weaknesses, immobility or tightness, structural discrepancies, movement inefficiencies…
Also important to note what running form CAN’T or DOESN’T tell you
Overall Approach
There are basically 2 schools of thought…
- Don’t mess with your form–do what feels natural and that will be best
- Improve your mechanics to be as efficient and healthy as possible
Our take: leaving “natural” movement alone assumes the premises that (1) your current movement is your natural movement and (2) your current natural movement is the best movement for you
- Neither of those are completely true
- Both of those are easily disproved
Instead: aspire toward more efficient and effective movement mechanics, but diagnose thoroughly and make changes carefully and gradually.
Strength & Mobility
The most common conclusions we can draw from running form tend to be around areas of strength/weakness and immobility/tightness
STRENGTH/WEAKNESS
- When something is weak, it doesn’t sustain load and motion the way it should
- Can result in asymmetry
- Most common example in young runners: knees collapsing
- Common examples in more experienced runners: dipping hips/shoulders
MOBILITY
- When things are too tight (or hypermobile), they don’t relax or contract appropriately
- Often visible in range of motion indicators
- Can show in asymmetry
- Common examples: tight hamstrings = poor back mechanics/heel lift
Structural Discrepancies
It is often the case that runners have slight structural asymmetries
- Visible in arm carriage
- Visible in lean or tilt
- Visible in rotation
Hard to know at observation whether these things are structural or just a question of weakness/tightness
- Important to get expert attention
- Leg length discrepancy, spine rotation, foot size
Movement Inefficiencies
When the body is poorly wired, it moves in ineffective and/or inefficient ways
- Foot strike position
- Arm carriage
- Torso tilt/position
- Knee drive
- Heel lift
How do you know it’s this and not other things?
- Look for strength/mobility issues
- Look for structural asymmetry
- Usually can rule those things out
What can be done about it?
- Try our pre-run routine: atozrunning.com/free
- Strength first (lunges) + mobilize
- Leg swings to open up hips
- Then precision drills
- EMPHASIZE: deliberate movements, isolated
WORLD OF RUNNING
World of Running
Dan O – 10k (RTS) 1st AG
Hannah – 10k (RTS) 3rd AG
MILE:
– Ben PR
– Craig
– Marissa
– Hannah
– Stephanie PR
– Jacob PR
– CJ PR
– Jared
#1. Silesia Diamond League
(source: LetsRun)
Women’s 3,000m
- Freweyni Hailu (Ethiopia) victory in a blazing final 400m
- Meeting record 8:26.61
- Over the last lap, put the hurt on Kenya’s Lilian Rengeruk and countrywoman Lemlem Hailu
- Latvian record for Agate Caune in 8:39.78
- South American & Venezuelan record for Joselyn Brea in 8:43.26 (she also holds the Venezuelan records in 1500m, 3,000m steeple, and 5,000m and would hold the 10,000m except that her sister ran it faster); duathlon world champ
Men’s 3,000m steeple
- Soufiane El Bakkali (Morocco) extended his win streak with another uncontested victory
- Set the pace at 8min but didn’t try to stay on it middle of the race
Women’s 800m
- Mary Moraa (Kenya) continues the season dominance with a meeting record 1:56 victory
- Meeting record, missed her PB by 0.14 seconds
- 2nd place Halimah Nakaayi set a Ugandan record in 1:57.78
- 3rd place Natoya Goule-Toppin (Jamaica) also ran under 1:58
- USA’s Sage Hurta-Klecker was 4th in a near-PB 1:58:09
Men’s 1500m
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- Jakob Ingebrigtsen (Norway) with another astounding victory in a European record 3:27.14 (meeting record as well)
- First 8 men across the line all ran personal best times
- Dropped almost a second off his PB set only a couple weeks ago
- Edging closer to the insane El Guerrouj world record of 3:26.0 (which has stood now for 25 years)
- Kenya’s Abel Kipsang was a distant second in a PB 3:29.11
- Nearly all of those 2 seconds Ingebrigtsen put on Kipsang were in the last 100m (or maybe 150m)
- Announcer even called moments before it happened
- Kenya’s Reynold Cheruiyot was 3rd
- Andrew Coscoran set an Irish record in 4th in 3:30.42
- *Ingebrigtsen is leading the Diamond League standings with a perfect score 4 for 4 (32 points), second place has only 13 (USA’s Yared Nuguse)
#2. Other fast running in Europe
Belgium – Men’s 5,000m (source: LetsRun)
- Sean McGorty (USA) hit the world standard! He is now officially qualified in the 5,000m for WC
- He finished 3rd behind Kenya’s Cornelius Kemboi (13:00) and Ireland’s Brian Fay (13:01)
- Fay set a new Irish record
- (PS: there were 7 heats of the men’s 5,000m!)
Belgium – Men’s 1500m (source: LetsRun)
- USA’s Cooper Teare showed solid form once again in a 3:33 victory.
- Where was this at USA championships?
Italy – Men’s 1500m (source: LetsRun)
- USA’s Joe Waskom may have guaranteed his trip to WC with a 3:34 victory (just missed the standard of 3:34.20, but bumped his rankings a lot)
#3. Some road championships
Women’s USATF 6k Champs (source: DyeStat)
- Emily Lapari took the lead early on with Annie Rodefels
- Nell Rojas tucked in just behind them
- Pack split of Ednah Kurgat, Nell Rojas, Annie Rodenfels Emma Hurley, Emily Lipari, and Tristin Van Ord
- The group came through at 9:54 at two miles
- At 4k Hurley and Kurgat had separated a little bit
- In the kick Nell Rojas was the one to watch, but Ednah had too much space on her to make up the gap.
Results:
- Ednah Kurgat 18:31
- Nell Rojas 18:33
- Annie Rodenfels 18:34
- Emma Hurley 18:36
- Tristin Van Ord 18:39
- Emily Lipari 18:41
- Anne-Marie Blaney 18:54
- Kassie Parker 19:07
- Olivia Pratt 19:09
- Molly Grabill 19:11
Men’s USATF 8k Champs (source: DyeStat)
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- Clayton Young won his 2nd road title in a strong finish against a strong field (including the likes of Olympian Leonard Korir and Emmanuel Bor and Sam Chelenga)
- Andrew Colley finished second
- OSU start (who ran both the 10,000m and 5,000m at USA champs a week ago) Isai Rodriguez was third
Men’s Top Ten Results
- Clayton Young 22:45
- Andrew Colley 22:49
- Isai Rodriguez 22:50
- Emmanuel Bor 22:54
- Aidan Reed 22:56
- Leonard Korir 23:01
- Sam Chelanga 23:05
- Nick Randazzo 23:15
- Kirubel Erassa 23:27
- Brogan Austin 23:38
BONUS:
Courtney Dauwalter breaks ANOTHER record
(Source)
- Courtney Dauwalter is on a roll. She broke yet another course record at the Hardrock 100
- The Hardrock 100 is a 33,197 feet climb through mud and snow in the San Juan Mountains
- She broke the previous record by an hour and four minutes to cover the 102.5-mile course in 26:14:08.
- She claimed this record despite running off course at mile 87 and had to come back and correct herself.
- Anne-Lise Rousset Seguret of France led the race through the first 64 miles. Serguet ended up finishing second over an hour after Dauwalter.
- Dauwalter now owns both course records at Hardrock (she set the clockwise record last year).
Interested in a training plan and/or coaching? We offer personalized support to help you achieve your goals!
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